Prime of her Life
by locomotive
Summary: Detective Sofia Curtis is back in the field and facing one of the most frustrating cases of her career, a series of bank heists with no clues. Can she and the rest of the CSI team solve this case before time runs out and the gang disappears for good? Crime/Drama with SoNic Romance. Rated T for violence.
1. Chapter 1

**Author's Notes:**

This is my second story which revolves around the lives of Sofia Curtis and Nick Stokes. While it's not a sequel to my first story "Line of Duty" the timeline follows shortly after it and contains a lot of spoilers to my first effort. I've tried to expand the plot a little this time and include a few more team members, but the slant is still definitely SoNic, my favourite paring. I hope you enjoy it, please R&R.

**Chapter 1**

"What have we got?" Grissom asked as he walked under the yellow crime tape before stopping on the steps of Nevada Mutual Bank.

Detective Sofia Curtis looked up, finished issuing instructions to a uniformed policeman and then turned to answer, "Armed robbery."

Dressed in a baby blue button down shirt and navy slacks, she kept pace with Gil Grissom as he entered the bank and looked around slowly.

Sofia continued, "Five men, dressed in black coveralls and ski masks and armed with AK-47s and handguns, entered the premises at fifteen forty two. They corraled the customers and subdued the staff before emptying the cash tills. The whole thing was finished inside ninety seconds. It looks like the manager may have put up some resistance, he was shot."

"What's his condition?" asked Grissom.

"He's DOA. His body's been transfered to the morgue, Jim's informing the family now," replied Sofia, stony faced.

Grissom paused, curling his mouth, "Hmm, sounds like they're escalating." He circled the room dropping bright yellow plastic markers beside cartridge casings as he went.

Nick killed the engine of the department issue SUV and ran a hand over his tired face before he sluggishly reached for his evidence kit. He and the team had been called to yet another bank robbery scene, their third this week. The Sherriff had pulled everyone onto this case, it was high priority as it was causing a media frenzy. All time off had been revoked and the Graveyard Shift was working days until this case was solved. Catherine, Warrick and Greg were still processing the evidence from yesterday's heist which left him, Grissom and Sara with the latest one. He pushed his way through the crowd which had gathered, a mixture of curious onlookers and pushy reporters. As he reached the yellow tape which marked off the scene he looked up to see Sara approach from his left. He slowed down his pace until she caught up.

"Hey Sara," Nick called.

"Hey Nick," Sarah replied, "Another robbery, who the hell are these guys?"

"I don't know, but I sure hope we catch these bastards and soon. Word is they opened fire on this one."

"Shit, the Sherriff's not gonna like this," Sara replied grimly.

They entered the building together, taking in the scene. The inside of the bank was open plan with a low ceiling, beige industrial carpet, to their right was a wood veneer counter which ran the almost the length of the room, in front of that was a queuing area marked out with black cordon tape. To the left of the counter was a brown wooden door which led into a small office. That's where Nick and Sara found Grissom, who was crouched over a large red blood patch on the carpet, taking pictures.

"Hey Grissom," called Nick, "Where do you want us?"

Grissom looked up, "Sara, you take the office, Nick you take the witnesses, I'll take the bank floor."

With a quick nod Nick made his way towards the left wall of the bank where Sofia was busy interviewing witnesses.

Sara made for the office, but not before glancing over her shoulder to glimpse Nick greeting Sofia. She paused briefly, taking in their body language. Sofia moved away from the witness she was questioning and turned towards Nick, smiling broadly as he approached. She couldn't hear them speak from her position, but she didn't need to. The words weren't important, it was the eye contact, the subtle touches, how Sofia's face lit up as they spoke and how she laughed gently at one of his quips, holding his gaze and tilting her head seductively as she did. Although they hid it well, Sara was sure there was something going on between them. She was a trained observer and the signs were unmistakable. Watching them together like this made Sara's heart sink and her eyes betrayed her saddness briefly before the professional mask came down once again. Composed now, she turned and entered the office, evidence kit in hand, glad of the distraction.

Sofia sighed as she mentally planned out the rest of her shift. There were eight witnesses to canvas before she would head back to the morgue to get an update on the bank manager's autopsy. After that she would need to check in with the lab to see what they had pieced together from this and the other bank robberies. This was the fifth robbery in the past two weeks and it was obviously the same crew. The MO was identical each time; each bank was hit between two and four pm by five masked men, they tended to go for banks with open plan spaces and a corden queuing system – easier to pen in and control the customers. Each robbery was over in less than ninety seconds, and they only ever went for the cash tills, never the vaults. While there was plenty of security footage, it didn't give them much other than the method. None of the men had any identifying features and they wore gloves so there were no prints or transfers. There was however an obvious leader, one man who orchestrated proceedings each time. He was slightly shorter and bulkier than the other four.

She made her way over to the group of witnesses and begin her questioning. She was halfway through the first interview when she saw Nick approaching. _Shit, what am I going to say to him... I look like hell!_ They had been seeing each other on and off a little over the past few weeks. She thought things were going well but then he stopped calling and she hadn't heard from him in over two weeks. It had been a rough few months after the shooting at the Fischer scene, she was badly injured and she nearly didn't make it through surgery. She pulled through that but then faced an uphill battle and weeks of rehab to defy the odds and eventually recover. She could still remember how she felt walking into the department on her first day back. The medical staff and her mother didn't think it could ever be possible. At one stage she didn't think it was possible herself. But there was one person who refused to give up, one person who stuck by her and supported her every step of the way. That person was Nick Stokes. They had spent hours upon hours together and had shared everything. Even after she got out of hospital he kept calling over to check in, kept helping her with her recovery. Slowly that friendship had developed into something much deeper and she was sure he was the one, only now he had stopped calling. She couldn't understand it, what had changed, had she done something wrong?

Sofia excused herself from the witness and turned to greet Nick, smiling nervously. He looked good dressed in dark jeans and a black vee neck teeshirt under his CSI vest. It was silly, she suddenly felt like a teenager crushing on the highschool jock.

"Hey Sofia," Nick called cheerily. On seeing the cocked eyebrows from the uniformed officers he quickly added, "Umm, I mean Detective Curtis," and scratched the back of his head sheeplishly.

Sofia chuckled at his awkwardness, she was relieved to see she wasn't the only nervous one.

"Hey Stokes," she replied. "I'm just collecting witness statements. Why don't you start on the other end."

"Sure thing," said Nick before lowering his voice, "So, how've you been? I haven't heard from you in a couple of weeks. I was getting a little worried, everything okay?"

"Yeah, everything's fine. Look this isn't really the right time for this..." started Sofia.

"Oh, right, of course," Nick replied quickly. "Will you be by the lab later, maybe we can grab a break together?"

"Sounds good," smiled Sofia. "Look, I gotta get back to it here. But later, definately."

They held eachother's gaze for a moment before finally turning their attention back to their work.

An hour later, Sofia could feel her frustration rise, threatening to bubble up to the surface. The witness statements had revealed nothing of use, no extra detail that might shed some light on these robberies. She finished at the scene, checking in with Grissom before she left. Nothing noteworthy from his preliminary findings either. It was going to be tough to get any kind of a break on this one. Sighing heavily she left the building, ignoring the gathered press as they shouted questions at her.

Checking her watch, Sofia decided to head back to the lab first, Doc Robbins wouldn't be finished the autopsy of the bank manager for a couple of hours yet. Her first stop was the AV room.

"Hey Archie, please tell me you got something," she said more in hope than expectation.

"Hey Detective, I've been pouring over this footage for hours, I've got nothing," replied Archie, frowning.

"Okay, thanks Archie. Call me if you get anything."

Back in the layout room Warrick was updating the Vegas street map with extra pins, marking out the two most recent robberies. Sofia smiled and nodded a greeting to him as she entered.

"Hey Sofia," said Warrick. "I've mapped out all five robberies, they're all in North Vegas, all of them are along or just off North Las Vegas Boulevard. I can't see a pattern in the order that they're being hit, but the gang are definitely going for a particular layout. All the banks are on the smaller side, with less security, open plan floor, corden tapes for the customer line, and easily accessible counters.

"Is there anything else we can use to try and predict where and when they're likely to hit next?" asked Sofia thoughtfully.

"I can't help you on the when, but there are two banks in that area that fit the profile," said Warrick as he handed her a manila folder.

At that moment Sofia's pager beeped. Cursing softly she thanked Warrick before leaving. The page was from the Sherriff, he had called a meeting back at base. This wasn't going to be pretty. She cursed again when she realised that she'd have to miss her date with Nick. They'd just have to wait until this case was over before they could make and make any plans. Without looking back she left the lab and made her way to the Sherriff's office. It was going to be a long night.


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter 2**

The meeting at the Sherriff's office was uncomfortable to say the least. They were all lined up in front of his desk, Sofia, Captain Jim Brass and Detective Lou Vartann. The Sherriff launched into one of his usual tirades lasting a full twenty minutes before they could even start discussing the case notes. It didn't help much that they had no new leads, these guys were good and despite their solid detective work they just weren't getting anywhere. Brass finished his summary by suggesting that they'd need to wait it out until they got lucky or the gang made a mistake. That wasn't what the Sherriff wanted to hear.

Turning to Brass the Sherriff roared, "I don't give a damn if you have to work day and night, I want you to go out there and come back with something. If you don't break this case soon I'll personally see to it that you spend the rest of your career writing parking tickets. And that goes for the rest of you too! Now get the hell out of here and go do your jobs!"

Back in Jim's office the mood was tense. They were used to feeling the Sherriff's wrath but this time it was different. He'd never threatened anyone's career in public like that before and Jim's face told them that they needed to find some way to make a breakthrough. All three spent the next couple of hours working through the evidence, trying to find a lead, a new angle, some clue that could help them.

Flicking through Doc Robbins's paperwork Sofia said, "Autopsy report's back on the bank manager, Bill Hicks. Cause of death, single gunshot to the head, he died almost instantly."

Turning to Vartann Brass asked "Anything from ballistics?"

"The shot was fired from a 9mm semi automatic, the ammunition was off the shelf, no way to trace it," replied Vartann.

"Did we recover the weapon?" asked Brass.

Vartann replied, "No. We didn't see a weapon dump from the CCTV footage so it looks like he still has it."

Frowning, Brass turned back to Sofia, "Anything from the eye witness statements?"

"Just the usual, all five men wore masks and were dressed in black, couldn't see their faces or hands, they didn't call each other by name, they just used a number designation. Prime numbers to be exact."

"Prime numbers, do you think that has any special significance?" asked Brass.

"Maybe, I'll cross check against Warrick's map to see if there's a pattern," replied Sofia.

Brass continued, "Plus you said you'd narrowed down the next likely targets to two banks?"

"Yeah, it looks like there are two in the catchment area that fit the profile, I'm meeting with the bank managers tomorrow."

"Ok, well in the meantime go back over the witness statements to see if you missed anything and check back with Warrick on that map," said Brass. "And Lou, you follow up on ballistics, see if you can find some way to ID the shooter, check for prints on the bullet, run a database search for similar MOs in other cities."

Sofia and Vartann nodded their acknowledgement, turned on their heels and left the office. Looking at her watch, Sofia sighed. It had already been a long day and she had a full night's work stretched out ahead of her. She grabbed a coffee in the break room and then went to her desk to review the witness statements. A couple of wasted hours later, she was feeling tired and frustrated. Her neck was stiff and she could feel a headache coming on. Determined to keep going she turned her attention to Warrick's map, cross-referencing against the prime numbers the robbers used, trying every combination she could think of. It was no use, her brain was shutting down and she needed sleep. Sofia tidied up her desk and headed for the comfort of her own bed. She soon fell into an uneasy slumber, her dream state still plagued by dark memories of gunshots and terrifying pain.

Three hours sleep and a shower later, Sofia felt somewhat human again. She dressed herself in dark slacks and black knitted v-neck shirt. Afterwards she ate a light breakfast, washed down with strong coffee and then made her way back to the office. Having checked in with Brass she spent the next couple of hours working on the prime numbers. While she wasn't bad at math in high school, she wasn't exactly captain of the chess club. Sofia soon realized she wasn't going to solve this by herself; she'd need to bring in the big guns, Grissom. _Me and Grissom alone together in his office for hours, Sarah's going to love that!_ But before any of that she had an appointment with the bank manager to keep. She emailed Grissom with a copy of the map and an explanation of the current line of enquiry, rounding off by asking for his help. Then she switched off her computer monitor and made her way to the PD garage.

The cool air conditioning of the department issue SUV was a welcome foil for the oppressive mid afternoon desert heat. Turning the fans up to full strength Sofia enjoyed how the cool air washed over her tired features. She ran the prime numbers through her head again, 2, 3, 5, 7, 11, they were part of the Additive Primes category. The numbers didn't match the street names, or the building numbers and so couldn't be used to predict the next target. There had been five robberies in the past two weeks and there were five prime numbers; did the numbers mark out the timings of the raids? If so, did that mean they were finished and had disappeared in the desert wind? Somehow Sofia couldn't shake the feeling that she was missing something.

Finally arriving at the first of the two banks she parked the SUV and gathered her case notes for her first meeting. With a bit of luck she'd be able to make some connection to the previous robberies. The interior of the bank definitely fit the profile; past the glass fronted entrance lay a familiar open plan room. Straight ahead was the teller counter, running the full length of the room. In front of that was the customer line, neatly marked off by cordon tape. To the left and right were glass walled offices, housing various admin and managerial staff. Sofia flashed her badge and was escorted by the lone security guard to the manager's office. Over the next few hours she reviewed security logs, CCTV tapes, checked the security protocol, interviewed staff members. There was nothing obvious which might signal if this was the next intended hit, let alone when it might happen. Sofia asked for the security tapes to take back for expert examination by Archie. She gathered up her belongings and prepared to leave for her second appointment.

Before Sofia had a chance to leave the manager's office there was a commotion on the bank floor. She looked up to see five masked men enter the bank and instantly spread out in a well-practiced move. One of the men took out the security guard as he entered, knocking him out with the butt of his AK-47. He then made his way to the customer queuing area while a second gunman cleared the back offices. A third man covered the front counter, at the same time a fourth man began to make his way to Sofia's position in the manager's office. The fifth man, the gang leader, was the last to enter and he strolled calmly towards the centre of the room. He shouted military style orders and got status updates from the others as he walked.

"Number Two?" he asked.

"Clear," came the reply.

Number Seven!" he continued

"All clear," was the answer.

"Number Eleven?" came the next call.

"Clear."

Number Three was bearing down on the manager's office fast and Sofia had only a couple of seconds to make a move. Should she evade the gang and try to take in as much first hand detail as possible? This was their best lead to date; she was actually in the room with them! Sofia was outnumbered five to one so it would be impossible to bring them down on her own. But she was LVPD, she couldn't lie down and let these thugs run riot over her town. Decision made, Sofia reached inside her trouser pocket and hit speed dial 1 on her cell phone – Jim Brass. She would tip him off about the heist and try to slow down these guys long enough for back up to get here. Her best bet was to go for the leader - that would spread confusion amongst the others and break their rhythm. With the deftest of moves Sofia jumped out from the office, grabbed Number Three and smashed his head against the doorframe, knocking him to the floor. She drew her service weapon and covered the ground quickly until she was just a few feet away from the leader, Number Five.

"LVPD! Put down your weapons."

Number Five looked startled; this obviously wasn't part of the plan. He hesitated for a moment, but then quickly grabbed one of the customers, pulling her in front of him, wrapping his left arm around her chest and pointing his handgun at her temple.

It was Sofia's turn to hesitate; she wasn't prepared for a human shield situation. From her peripheral vision she could see the other gang members shift uncomfortably, uncertain of what to do next. Sofia held firm, weapon raised and pointed at the leader's head, determinedly holding his stare.

Number Five broke the silence, "Hold your positions, the detective won't shoot, she has too much to lose."

The leader pulled his hostage tighter; she whimpered, eyes wide, pleading with Sofia to end the standoff.

"Detective, I'm giving you one chance to end this peacefully. You know I'll shoot her, after all, you already saw my handy work at the Nevada Mutual yesterday."

Sofia was torn, if she didn't stand down he'd shoot the hostage, but if she did she'd be captured and would be at the mercy of these thugs. Memories of the Fischer scene flooded her mind and the terror rose steadily inside her. Her mouth twitched as she weighed up her options and finally, with a defeated sigh, she lowered her gun accepting her fate.

"Place it on the ground, slowly," Number Five ordered. "Then put your hands up."

Sofia complied, breathing deeply, trying to control her fear. Number Five released his hostage and she gratefully moved away, back towards the rest of the customers. But suddenly he raised his weapon again and before anyone could react he shot her at point blank range, directly in the head. The woman hostage slumped to the ground, dead. The other hostages screamed and cried out in terror, Sofia shouted out, "No…" and lurched forward, arms outstretched, but it was too late. Her action had cost that woman her life.

"Let that be a lesson to you Detective, to all of you. If anyone else tries any heroics I'll start shooting," warned Number Five. He quickly approached Sofia who was still focused on the woman's still body, ashen faced, completely broken by what had happened. When he reached her, she looked up, eyes wet, but she looked defiantly at him. Without a word he punched her hard in the stomach. As she doubled over in pain he raised his arm and swung down violently on Sofia's head with the butt of his handgun, knocking her to the floor right at his feet. He looked down at her briefly before turning around signaling at two of his colleagues. She momentarily registered further kicks to her middle before her world faded to black.


	3. Chapter 3

**Chapter 3**

Sitting at his office desk Jim Brass flipped open his cell phone to answer Sofia's call.

"Brass," came the greeting. He was surprised when Sofia didn't respond. But yet he could hear her voice speaking through the earpiece.

"_LVPD! Put down your weapons."_

As Brass continued to listen, he could hear other voices talking. Slowly the realization hit him that he was listening to another attempted bank robbery, but this time Sofia had interrupted them. Suddenly he heard a loud bang – gunshot - followed by screams. _Shit he's fired again! Did he shoot Sofia? Oh God!_

At that moment Vartann passed by Brass's office door. Jim shouted hurriedly at him, "Wait, there's another bank robbery in progress. Which bank was Sofia visiting first?"

"Holy shit!" came Vartann's reaction, "Um it was Hart-Winters, down on Bruce."

Brass, picking up his radio bellowed urgently, "All units, Code 3, armed robbery in progress at the Hart-Winters Bank on the corner of North Las Vegas Boulevard and Bruce. Proceed with caution, suspects are armed and dangerous and have hostages."

Jim checked his pistol and made for the underground car park, with Vartann on his left shoulder. "Sofia's in there," Jim said grimly as they ran towards the car. "Call SWAT."

* * *

Sofia opened her eyes and tried to focus. The left side of her head throbbed and she had a splitting headache. When she swallowed she could taste blood in her mouth. She tried to lift her right hand to shield her eyes from the harsh ceiling lights but she couldn't move. Her hands were bound tightly behind her back. Sofia groaned weakly as she felt the cold metal of her own handcuffs biting into her wrists. She tried to sit up but her ankles were also bound. Sofia was positioned awkwardly on her side and she tried to wheel around to get a better view. She was relieved she was still alive but this was a new situation for the gang and she couldn't predict how they might react next. The thought scared her but she swallowed hard, pushing down her fear and focused her attention on the scene. Two of the gang had held their formation, guarding the staff and customers while a third stood near her, facing away. Although she couldn't hear them, she could see Number Five and Number Eleven looking through the slats of the closed Venetian blinds covering the entrance, talking intensely.

"There must be a thousand cops out there," said Number Eleven, panicked. "What are we going to do now?"

"First things first, take out the CCTV cameras, we're like sitting ducks if the cops patch into the feed," replied Number Five.

Number Eleven quickly disappeared into one of the back offices, emerging a few moments later having accomplished his task.

"What next?" asked Number Three. "How are we gonna get out of here?"

"I'm working on it," replied Number Five. "As I see it we have three options; shoot our way out, use the hostages, or use her," pointing over at Sofia. "She's one of them so she's our best leverage."

"But how? Surely we'd be better off taking a hostage each and walking out through the front," said Number Three.

"Number Two, check the offices for a webcam, I have an idea," said the leader, still staring at Sofia.

A few moments later Number Two emerged from the manager's office. "The office on the left has a desktop computer and a mobile webcam," said Number Two.

"Perfect, we can set up a side-show that will have the cops reeling. They'll be begging us to leave here," said Number Five, his eyes were hard as he spoke with renewed purpose. "Bring her to me," he ordered pointing in Sofia's direction.

* * *

Jim Brass stood outside the Hart-Winters Bank, at the front of the perimeter line, which had been formed by uniformed police. He ran his hand over his face in a washing action. He was presiding over a hostage situation with one of his own caught right in the middle of it. It was a real mess, the situation had turned into a circus. The media had zoned in immediately and the street was thronged with satellite vans, cameras and reporters. The police had managed to push them back somewhat but they still had a bird's eye view of the bank as well as of every move he made. At least he'd managed to keep Sofia's involvement out of the public domain for now.

Brass's team had been in place for the past ten minutes and they had just managed to hook into the bank's CCTV feed. The footage was grainy and in monochrome, but they still had a very good view of the inside of the bank. The gang had trapped the customers and staff inside the cordon tape, which was covered by two of the men. He could see Sofia lying motionless on the ground near the manager's office. A third man stood near her. The fourth and fifth men were pacing around the room, looking for likely escape routes and monitoring police movements. Jim wasn't yet sure if someone had been shot during the gunfire but he could see a second body lying lifeless on the floor near the other hostages. He released a long breath he didn't know he was holding when he finally saw Sofia stir slightly.

Even though he didn't have any audio, Brass knew they were mulling over their next move. He had the same problem, the building's only access was through the front entrance so they couldn't get in from behind or above. A frontal assault would be certain to end badly so that was out. Their best bet for now was to monitor the movements inside, set up a negotiating team and bide their time. Whatever way it played out, there was no way Brass was going to let these guys just walk away. He was still monitoring the security feed when suddenly it all turned snowy on his screen.

"Damn, looks like they cut the feed, we've lost our eyes." Jim said as he turned to the tactical chief. Without that any move to storm the building would present too much of a risk to the hostages. 'How do we reestablish a link?" Brass asked, gruffly.

"Our only way to get a camera in is through the air ducts. We can't drill through, they'll hear that so we'll try to run a cable down through the utilities trunking right here," said the tactical chief, Captain Ben Taylor, pointing at a blueprint of the building.

"Okay, tell your men to make a start, they'll need to change out of uniform, if they get made those guys will start shooting," replied Brass. "What about our tactical options?"

"That's more difficult," said Taylor. "There's only one way in or out and a frontal assault isn't a good option.

"What about up top or round back?" asked Brass.

"The rear of the building is reinforced because that's where the vault is located," replied Taylor. "We could break in from the top but the air and electrical ducts will impede us. Our best option is to go in from the adjoining building on the left. It backs onto the offices, which is good because there are no hostages against those walls so that will eliminate any collateral damage. The tricky part will be to set the explosives without them hearing us.

"Do we have a workaround for that?" asked Brass.

"We have a few options we could try. Just give me the nod and I'll send a team in to investigate," said Taylor.

"Okay, do it," said Brass.

A few more anxious minutes passed before Brass got word that they were ready to try running the video feed. Several more minutes passed before he got the signal that it was in position and ready to test. Before he had a chance to switch on the screen however he spotted movement at the front entrance as the blinds came up and someone stood in the doorway.

"Hold your fire," ordered Brass as he reached for his binoculars.

Five seconds later he cursed, pulled out his phone and frantically punched in some numbers. "Get me the Sheriff," he snarled at the operator, "We've got a serious problem."

* * *

Back at the lab the CSI's were in the break room grabbing a much-needed bite to eat while they poured over the evidence. They didn't have much to go on, the ballistics from the bullet came back with nothing they could trace; no weapon type, no way to trace the bullet, no prints. The findings from the video footage were just as bleak; no identifiable images. These guys were well-drilled pros. Warrick was discussing the prime numbers theory with Nick while Sara and Catherine were looking over pictures of shoe prints. Greg meanwhile made the coffee. They were chatting busily when Grissom suddenly burst through the door.

"We've got a problem," he said with a grim look on his face. He had everyone's attention.

"What is it?" asked Catherine in a concerned tone.

"I think I know when they're going to hit the next bank," said Grissom.

"When?" asked Catherine urgently.

"Well," said Grissom, "I was looking over the prime numbers angle. The first robbery was what, eleven days ago?"

"Um, yeah," said Nick with wide eyes.

"The second one happened four days later and the third one was two days after that…"

"What are you driving at Grissom," interrupted Sara, impatiently.

Grissom considered her silently for a moment before continuing, "These prime numbers; 2, 3, 5, 7 and 11. Turn them around and you have a countdown of when each bank was hit."

Everyone stood there in stunned silence for a moment.

"Five numbers, five robberies. Does that mean they're finished?" asked Warrick.

"I'm afraid not," replied Grissom. "The sequence isn't complete. There are two numbers left; one and zero. I think they're going to hit two banks today."

"That's crazy, no one in their right mind would attempt something like that," said Nick.

"Um guys," interrupted Greg. "You might want to see this," he said pointing up at the TV screen which was running a news story in the background.

Everyone turned to look where Greg was pointing. Right there on the screen was a picture of a bank, surrounded by armed police. The banner on the bottom read,

"BANK ROBBERY IN PROGRESS IN NLV. 17 HOSTAGES REPORTED TO BE INSIDE"

"Jesus, you were right Grissom!" exclaimed Nick, incredulously.

Grissom just winced. He wished he had worked it out sooner. Things could get very messy. They were all still watching the news story when suddenly the blinds went up on the front door of the bank. The shaky TV footage zoomed in for a better look. Someone was standing in the doorway; a woman, blonde, bloodied face. She had a police badge on her belt and appeared to be bound. Her face was set hard but her eyes darted around, as if looking for someone. The most disturbing thing though was a handwritten sign, which was draped around her neck. It read"

_ATTENTION POLICE: _

_YOU HAVE 10 MIN TO RETREAT. _

_OTHERWISE WE WILL HURT PEOPLE,_

_STARTING WITH HER._

_LIK2WTCH_

Everyone stood silently for several moments before the quiet was broken abruptly with a guttural cry. Everyone turned around to see Nick crumpled in a heap on the floor. In that second, it became clear to everyone in the room that Nick and Sofia shared something special. No one there noticed however that there was one person who didn't turn around. Sara was transfixed by the images on the TV screen, her eyes wet, betraying her panic and terror. _Sofia!_


	4. Chapter 4

**Chapter 4**

Brass had managed to push back all the TV crews and restrict their live coverage, but it was too late, the damage was already done. Every household in the state saw the images of Sofia through the glass door. After a quick phone call with Grissom he finally understood the full meaning of the message around Sofia's neck. Apparently the last line referred to a website for webcasts. That meant that whatever this gang had in store it would be completely uncensored and even worse, fully public. There was no way they could shut down the site before the ten minute deadline which meant that time was running out to execute a rescue plan. SWAT was at the scene and the tactical officers were reviewing the building blueprints with Brass for potential entry points. Everything looked locked down pretty tight except for one section of wall separating one of the offices from the adjacent building.

"It looks like there may have been a door here once, were these buildings shared at any time?" asked Captain Taylor.

"Um, come to think of it this bank used to be bigger. I guess they must have downsized a few years ago and sold off some real estate," replied his lieutenant.

"Well then, this looks like our entry point," replied Taylor. "It's a weak point in the wall so we can set up small scale explosives to punch through. The only problem is it's a tight fit so we'll have to enter one by one."

"But that means we won't be able to reach the hostages before the gang starts shooting," argued Brass.

"Yes, that's true, so we'll go in under a cover of smoke bombs and tear gas," replied Taylor.

"Tear gas," exclaimed Brass, "isn't that a little extreme, there are civilians in there?"

"I know it's not ideal but it's our best chance for a safe outcome, no discussion," replied Taylor, curtly.

Brass frowned. He could feel the bile rise from his stomach. He didn't like this plan; there were civilian hostages in there, not to mention Sofia. But Captain Taylor had tactical control and besides, he didn't have a better idea.

"Okay," Brass said grimly. "Let's go over the scenario one more time, we've only got one shot at this."

* * *

Back in the crime lab Catherine stood in the middle of the break room, surveying the damage - smashed mugs, tossed paper, upturned chairs. Nick had worked the room over in a rage before storming off, closely followed by Warrick. There was only one place he was headed, the bank. He was gone before she could stop him, not that she was going to. The remainder of the team had dispersed pretty quickly too. She guessed Grissom was back in his office. She didn't know where Greg and Sara had gone. News of the broadcast had spread quickly and the whole lab was watching events unfold at TV screens and computer monitors. Catherine made her way to Grissom's office. She found him sitting at his desk talking on his cell phone. He hung up as she entered.

"Was that Brass?" she asked.

Grissom nodded. "They're working on a rescue plan."

"What can we do?" asked Catherine.

"Keep processing the evidence, find out as much as we can about these guys," came his reply.

"Gil, I read the sign, I know what it means," said Catherine.

At first Grissom said nothing, he just looked at her. Finally he spoke, "Well in that case make sure Archie records the feed, it'll be needed for evidence."

"You're not going to watch it?" asked Catherine, surprised.

Grissom cocked his head quizzically, "Why would I want to?"

Catherine nodded her agreement and left Grissom's office to round up what was left of the team. Greg was back in the lab processing evidence but there was no sign of Sara. Her search finally brought her to the female locker room where she found Sara standing at a sink, washing her tear-soaked face.

"Sara, are you okay?" Catherine asked in a concerned voice.

Sara hadn't heard Catherine enter the room and was startled by her. She recoiled a little but recovered quickly before answering, "Yeah, sure. I'd better get back to work…"

She made a move to leave but was stopped by Catherine.

"Look Sara, I can only imagine how hard this must be for you."

The words caught Sara off guard. How could Catherine know about her feelings for Sofia? She faltered a little, then swallowed hard, ready to confess everything before Catherine continued, "I can only imagine the memories it must bring up for you."

That's when Sara realized she was talking about something else entirely, about her own captivity under that car in the desert.

"It's fine, really. I'm okay," came Sara's quick reply.

And with that she stepped around Catherine and left the room.

* * *

"Hey Man, wait up!" shouted Warrick as he chased Nick into the parking garage.

"Don't try and stop me Rick, I'm going over there. Sofia needs me," replied Nick without breaking his stride. His jaw was set hard and his fists were balled.

Warrick had never seen Nick like this before. He had taken anger to a whole new level, but there was something else behind the rage, he was scared.

"Okay Nick, but I'm driving."

The drive to North Vegas seemed to take forever. Nick passed the time in impatient silence with his fists still balled, knuckles white. His mind was racing. How was he going to save Sofia? He could just burst through the front door and shoot them all. Or maybe he could trade, him for her. Maybe Brass had figured out a way in. If so, he definitely needed to be part of it. He couldn't get the image of a captive Sofia out of his head. She'd been injured, the blood on her face told him that. He shuddered at the thought. But it was the look in her eyes that chilled him the most. They way they darted around as if looking for someone, for him. When she needed him most he wasn't there for her. He wasn't going to stand idly by while they hurt her even more. He was going to do whatever he could to save her, just like she saved him at the Fischer scene. Nick hadn't known bravery like it. He didn't feel particularly brave himself right now. It was fear that propelled him. He couldn't let her down again_._

* * *

Sofia, wrists and ankles still bound, was sitting in the middle of room. She knew something was up but she didn't know exactly what it was. Her police instincts told her that it involved her and whatever was about to happen, it wouldn't be good. The gang had concocted some sort of plan to bargain their way to freedom and she was the chip. Maybe if she tried talking to them, she might figure out what was going on. Before she had a chance to do anything, Number Five looked at his watch and spoke.

"Time's up."


	5. Chapter 5

**Chapter 5**

Number Five strode towards Sofia, grabbed her by her pony tail and dragged her across the tiled floor towards the manager's office. Sofia's eyes grew wide in fear and pain and she gasped from the sting in her scalp as she was pulled. Number Three followed them into the office, closing the door behind them. The other hostages looked on in horror.

Sofia was flung roughly onto an aluminum-framed chair, which faced the office desk. Number Five walked over to the desktop computer, punched in a few commands and turned the webcam around to point at Sofia. Suddenly all the pieces fit into place and Sofia felt a dread rise from within her. She braced herself for what was about to come and her eyes hardened instantly. She knew they'd all be watching - Jim, Grissom, everyone in the PD and the crime lab, including Nick. The thought of Nick seeing this broadcast almost made her sick. She could only imagine what he must be feeling right now.

Number Five turned back towards Sofia and pulled a pistol from his waistband. It was Sofia's gun. Her breathing quickened, she was afraid. She knew there were worse things than death but no matter what she wouldn't beg for mercy. There was no point, she knew she wouldn't get any. He started pistol-whipping her across the face and body. Each blow was delivered with such force the legs of the chair tilted off the ground. Sofia stifled her roars as each shot landed. Blood spattered from her burst lip and trickled down her face. The skin around her eyes puffed up and her ears stung with pain. The beating continued for several agonizing minutes. The last hit was delivered with such force that it knocked Sofia off the chair and she tumbled to the floor face first. She was dazed and every part of her face and body ached. She lay there motionless for a minute wondering if he was finished.

Number Five motioned to Number Three to pick her up. He had some more punishment in store for her. He hadn't gotten the reaction he wanted so he was going to need to dial things up a notch. Number Three grabbed Sofia by the arm and pulled her up before slamming her knees into the floor. She grimaced and grunted as pain shot up her legs.

"Take off her shoes," ordered Number Five gruffly.

Number Three complied, exposing her bare feet. Number Five looked around the room and spotting a length of bamboo in a nearby plant pot he grabbed it and inspected it slowly. He smiled inwardly at the detective's reaction; a slight flicker in her eyes betrayed her fear. This was going to deliver the desired results. Sofia wrestled with Number Three who restrained her, clamping down on her shoulders and standing on her calves to lock her feet in position. Number Five approached slowly and positioned himself behind Sofia. She couldn't see him any longer but she knew what was coming. She felt panicked, once it started there was no way she could contain her terror or suppress her screams. She heard the air disperse with that familiar whipping sound as the bamboo decended.

The other hostages looked on in terror as the screams rose from the office. Some of them clung together for comfort, others sobbed. The sounds had a strange rhythm to them. First came the whoosh of the bamboo, followed by the sickening thwack as cane met skin and finally the blood-curdling shriek as the pain registered. The torture continued for several minutes, although it seemed like an eternity.

* * *

Brass could do nothing but look on helplessly as the live images streamed through cyber space. He held his head in his hands as the screams emanated out from the laptop in front of him. Nick and Warrick had arrived at the scene and had burst their way through the police cordon. They stood motionless for a moment as they studied the images on the laptop. Suddenly Nick let out a primal howl and grabbed Jim.

"Jesus Christ Brass, are you just gonna stand here while they do that to her?" Nick demanded. "Lets kick those fucking doors down and stop this!"

Brass looked at Nick for a moment, confused by his outburst, before suddenly realizing that Nick and Sofia were lovers.

"Look Nick, I hate this too," Brass sighed. "I'd like nothing more than to rush in and shoot those bastards. But you know as well as I do that it won't work, they'll kill her and the others if we don't do this right."

"But they're torturing her," pleaded Nick. "We gotta stop this, now."

"SWAT is almost in. Just hang on another few minutes, then we can all go in together," said Brass.

"I can't stand here for even a single second while they hurt her like this," said Nick as he started to push past Brass. Warrick stopped him.

"Look Man, we gotta play it Jim's way. You want her to walk away from this don't you?" said Warrick, looking earnestly at Nick.

Nick slumped, finally defeated. "Okay Rick. She better be all right. I don't know what I'll do if she's not okay."

All three just stood there quietly, watching the gruesome webcast. Nick flinched every time Sofia's face contorted in pain and he shuddered at every scream. Finally, to Nick's relief the caning ceased. He let out a long breath as Sofia's cries eased. She continued to kneel there, face and feet red with blood. She bowed her head to hide her face from the screen. She remained defiant, refusing to give her torturer what he wanted, refusing to plead for her safety.

Nick continued to watch as Number Five walked back around to face Sofia once again. He was waving Sofia's gun.

"Have you ever been shot Detective?" he asked her snidely.

She snapped up her head and locked eyes with him before replying, "Yes." She felt her heart race as old memories flooded back.

Number Five raised an eyebrow, "Really, where?"

Sofia held his gaze before replying " Shoulder, stomach," however her voice faltered a little.

Number Five spotted the weakness and seized on it, "The memories still haunt you don't they?"

"Yes," Sofia whispered weakly.

Nick watched in dismay as Number Five pulled back the chamber of the gun and pointed it at Sofia. Through the screen he could see her eyes widen and her breathing become visibly ragged. Number Five grabbed her by the hair and tugged so that her face was pointing upwards and her body tensed. He shoved the barrel of the gun into her mouth and smiled evilly.

"How about I add a third?" he snarled.

Sofia remained silent but the fear was visible on her face. She breathed hard through her nose and her nostrils flared.

Nick screamed at the screen as Number Five pulled the trigger. Sofia flinched and closed her eyes. _Click!_ She opened her eyes again and let out a muffled shout when she saw that the gun wasn't loaded. Number Five scoffed; he still held Sofia's head awkwardly. He turned towards the camera and addressed his audience.

"Consider this your last warning. Pull all the police out or next time the gun will have bullets. You've got ten minutes."

With that he released his grip on Sofia and her body sagged a little. Her head was bowed and she looked broken. Number Five started pounding Sofia again. It was clear he intended to spend the time inflicting more damage on her.

Nick was inconsolable. He couldn't believe what he just saw. He couldn't begin to imagine how scared Sofia must be feeling. All he could do was watch on helplessly while she almost died. He vowed to get revenge on this monster, just as soon as he could hold Sofia again. His thoughts were interrupted by Brass, "We're ready. You guys coming?"


	6. Chapter 6

**Chapter 6**

Sarah stood in the layout room, staring hard at the laptop screen. Every sinew in her body was screaming yet no sound escaped from her mouth. Her features were pale and she wretched inwardly as the pain from every blow registered on Sofia's face. Several minutes had passed since Number Five had pulled the trigger of the unloaded gun. At that moment Sarah thought her world had come to an end. The emotions she felt in that second were of an intensity she hadn't experienced before. Her stomach was twisted, a cold sweat had formed on her brow and she felt daggers tearing through her chest.

Ever since then Number Five had been beating down steadily on Sofia's face and body. Each blow knocked her to the floor, but his accomplise just picked her up every time. Sarah was angry, but the overwhelming emotion right now was terror. It wasn't that long since Sofia had come through the shooting which nearly took her life. Now she was being tortured via a live stream and all because she was in the wrong place at the wrong time. Sarah felt sick. Once more she found herself unable to anything to help Sofia.

Sarah was lost in her dark thoughts when suddenly Number Five paused the pounding to address his audience.

"Look at LVPD's finest," he said, pointing at Sofia's crumpled body. "They can't even protect their own, so how the hell are they going to protect you?"

He was pacing the room now as he continued, "They can't stop us, we can hit anywhere, anytime and they can't do anything about it. "

He stood over Sofia now as she lay limply on the bloodsoaked floor. "Look at your guardian, she's powerless to defend herself. She's broken, in every way. I am master and commander..."

His monologue was interrupted suddenly as Sofia's head rose up and she screamed "Fuck you! Is that all you got asshole!"

Sarah gasped. She couldn't believe what she was hearing. Why was Sofia baiting him like this? What could she possibly hope to achieve? Nothing only more pain, and maybe worse. Sarah looked on in desparation as Number Five turned towards Sofia with fire in his eyes. Sofia was kneeling now, staring defiantly back at Number Five. He silently signalled to Number Three who once more held Sofia down. Meanwhile Number Five grabbed Sofia's shirt and ripped it down to her naval. She stifled a shriek as he smiled maliciously when he spyed her gunshot wounds. She struggled helplessly as he slowly ran his fingers over the scarred skin. His touch made her squirm and she spat at him in protest. He didn't react, instead he reached into is pocket and produced a pack of cigarettes. He lit one and inhaled deeply. He stooped down and exhaled, blowing smoke in Sofia's face. She turned her head to one side in disgust.

Number Five pulled the shirt material down over the back of Sofia's shoulders, exposing more skin. Sofia continued to wrestle against Number Three's grip but it was no use, she was pinned down. Number Five flicked the ash off the cigarette before he placed it on the site of her shoulder wound. Sofia howled in pain as her skin singed and turned black.

Sarah grabbed the screen in front of her, shouting at him to stop. She wondered how much more Sofia could take, what she was witnessing was inhuman. Number Five removed the cigarette and took another drag before connecting it with Sofia's shoulder blade. Again she screamed in pain as the white heat hit her nerve endings.

"Had enough Detective?" snarled Number Five.

"Fuck you!" came her destressed reply.

Number Five frowned and dug the cigarette into her stomach wound. Again Sofia cried out in agony.

Sarah looked on helplessly as Sofia's face contorted in pain once more. He wanted to break her, he wanted her to relent and he would continue to punish her as long as resisted him. Sarah knew that he was using Sofia as a symbol of his power over law and order. He was hurting and humiliating Sofia as a message to the LVPD, that he was in charge and no-one could stop him. Sarah wondered where the hell were the SWAT team, why hadn't they stopped this by now?

Sarah sat motionless, her features drawn, as she watched her would-be lover endure this persecution. Tears stung her eyes as she saw how Sofia's features were distorted with suffering. More than anything else in the world she wanted to take Sofia's place, to spare her from all of this, to wrap her up and protect her from all this pain. But she knew that couldn't happen.

Number Five grabbed Sofia by her hair. Her breath hitched under his grip. He held the cigarette in front of her face. Sofia tried to shake her head free, shouting protests when she realized what he planned to do next.

"Do you like being a cop, Detective?" asked Number Five, calmly.

Sofia refused to reply, but continued to squirm under his grip.

"As I understand it, there are certain physical limiting factors," he moved the cigarette closer to her face. "For instance, you need to be fully sighted, don't you?" he snarled.

Sofia seemed panicked; she was biting her lip to stop herself from pleading with him. Instead she just released a garbled cry "Nnnaaagh."

Sarah heaved; she was going to be sick. She could do nothing but watch as Number Five moved in closer to inflict the devastating strike. Suddenly on the screen there was a big commotion, and the picture became foggy. It was difficult to see what was happening. There were loud shouts, followed by scuffles, followed by the sound of gunshots. Sarah screamed, "Sofiaaaa!"

After a few more minutes of chaos the smoke started to clear and the room came back into focus. Sarah's trembling fingers touched the screen, desperate to understand what had just happened. Finally she saw Sofia, safe and well, being held tightly by Nick, as SWAT and LVPD swarmed around the room. Sarah released a loud gasp as relief enveloped her. As she looked on she could see Nick embrace Sofia, tuck some loose hair strands behind her right ear and kiss her gently on her gashed lips. They didn't speak; they just sat there, scrunched up on the floor hugging each other. Sarah smiled broadly and tears of relief streamed down her face, but after a few moments her demeanor was tinged with certain sadness. She had seen enough and knowing Sofia was safe she folded down the screen of the laptop until she heard the familiar click before making her way quietly out of the layout room.

* * *

Sofia wrapped herself up in Nick's strong arms. Finally she felt safe and she wished she could stay like this forever. They sat there together for a long time, without exchanging words. She could hear Nick's quiet sobs and her heart broke. She didn't enjoy making him feel this way, putting him through all this worry and despair for a second time. She knew that for as long they stayed together there would be times when he would feel this way again. But for right now she pushed that out of her mind. All she could think about was how he came to her when she needed him most. How he gave himself to her, willfully putting himself in danger to help her. And she loved him for it. Sitting there, feeling his grip on her, she knew that this was no passing thing. She was sure he felt for her what she felt for him and the pain from her injuries eased a little.

Eventually Nick stood slowly and reached out his hand to help Sofia up. She took it gratefully. He moved to lift her and carry her out to the waiting paramedics but she stopped him.

"No Nick, I'm walking out of here."

"What are you talking about, you're in no condition to walk, just look at your feet," protested Nick.

Sofia looked up at him before replying gently, "Will you help me?"

Nick just smiled, nodded and threw his arm around her in support.

They walked out arm in arm and as Sofia's face hit the evening desert sunshine she closed her eyes and beamed inwardly. It was a good day.

**THE END**


End file.
